‘CELESTINA & LAWRENCE’ is a story about two young people living in Jharkhand’s tribal belt, trapped within their own individual struggle for a better life; it is about how destiny brings them closer and makes them start dreaming of a better future for themselves.
Celestina works as an underpaid daily wage labourer in Ranchi. She is an unmarried mother who has filed a case against her boyfriend in the state commission for women’s welfare to get justice for her daughter. But being a person of influence who also runs human trafficking rackets, it does not take long before he uses local police help to try and frame Celestina with false charges related to human trafficking.
On the other hand, Lawrence’s desire of becoming a real estate builder in Ranchi comes to naught after demonetization leads to economic crisis that ends his dream. He has no choice but quit his job on construction site where he used to work during day time only, then becomes full-time night watchman within one society or another. This move eventually results into sudden breakup with his girlfriend of many years whom he was financially supporting.
It happens that Celestina starts working at same construction site where Lawrence meets her. Having been devastated by troubles they have each gone through in life, they finally find solace in one another by coming together out of shared need for care, empathy and respect towards each other’s dreams.
As I look back now, I can see why ‘Celestina and Lawrence’ had its own journey because both characters are so authentic as well as their struggles portrayed within this film. For me as screenwriter though, all I did was bring these two people together on paper according my story telling requirements; it felt like somebody gave me skeleton made up of real bones then left rest for my creativity which involved giving it flesh & blood too.
I went back home – Ranchi three years back for personal reasons. Regional cinema was slowly but surely gaining momentum so that it could claim its space both nationally and internationally. As an indie-filmmaker, this was a dream come true where I had freedom to tell my stories without falling into trappings of inflated multi-million star value system within mainstream Hindi film industry.
The images which were surrounding me, the characters who loved meeting on daily basis, their culture, social-religious practices; these among other creative temptations are what drew me closer. From word go, what I knew is that screenplay’s treatment should follow characters more than issues they deal with: issues need to be backdrop while individuals confronting them or giving up under their weight should remain at centre-stage with all their virtues/vices/flaws & strengths/ goals and hopes intact. There has always been something about movies tracking humanity be it fiction or documentary – such films leave greater impact. And so in this spirit, let my people leave marks both minds+hearts too!
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